Supporting structure for a container cargo

ABSTRACT

Object of the present invention is a new supporting structure for a container cargo comprising a plurality of pre-tensioned belts coupled to an elastically deformable and not extensible element in composite material.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a new supporting structure for a container cargo from its open side, in particular when the cargo is made up of bulk material and is contained in a liner, i.e. a wrapping in plastic material arranged inside the same container. In detail, the support structure of the cargo (liner) is made up of a plurality of pre-tensioned belts coupled to an elastically deformable element arranged in the center and made up of a composite material.

2. Brief Description of the Prior Art

It is known in fact that for the transport of bulk granulated materials in a container it is indispensable to use the so called “liners” i.e. wrappings in plastic material of great dimensions (comparable to the container ones) which have the function to contain the bulk material to be transported similarly to a plastic bag of great dimensions.

It is also known that on the open side of the container it is needed to be provided a cargo supporting structure to guarantee the suitable structural resistance both in the configuration of the cargo with the container in horizontal position and in the discharge configuration in which the container can be lifted and inclined so that the bulk material can be discharged from the open side of the container.

At the state of the art, it is known that the above cited cargo supporting structures are usually made up of a plurality of steel bars anchored to a stiffening wall provided with suitable slots the container has to be provided with. The main disadvantage of this solution is in that said steel bars are disposable elements as well as the liner inside the container; in fact the production costs for the steel bars are remarkable and fall on the final customer, therefore it would be extremely advantageous to find an alternative in order to avoid the increase in costs for the final customer.

At the state of the art, it is also known the US patent application US2007267410 which relates to an outer stiffening system with belts applicable to a cargo to be transported in a container. Said system comprises a plurality of belts arranged in vertical (or horizontal) direction and spaced horizontally (or vertically) with respect to each other, the tension of each belt being adjustable independently. Said belts are anchored by means of ring fasteners or by means of buckle fastening means and said fastening means are, in turn, coupled to another belt to be arranged in the container at a prefixed distance from the open side of the container.

Similarly to the cargo supporting systems known at the state of the art, also in the case of the US patent application the supporting system is very articulated and complex and has many drawbacks. First of all, its applicability is strongly limited for the complexity in the mounting step when the many belts to support the cargo have to be arranged, and when each belt has to be tensioned to guarantee the perfect structural stability. With the described solution, it is needed to intervene on many tensioning means which act on the belts, thus causing a huge waste of time and of working force needed to complete the operation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Therefore aim of the present invention is to overcome all the just described drawbacks and to provide a cargo supporting structure (as for example a liner for the transport of bulk material) which is very simple to be realized and at the same time very efficient from a structural point of view.

Another aim of the present invention is to optimize the mounting steps of the supporting structure, with particular attention to the tensioning of the whole supporting structure which occurs by acting on only one tensioning means to be arranged on any belt the supporting structure is provided with.

The prefixed aims of the invention are solved by means of the structure object of the present invention which provides the use of reciprocal coupling between a plurality of belts pre-tensioned by tensioning means and a deformable and not extensible element realized in composite material to which there are connected all said belts.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other advantages will be clear from the detailed description of the present invention which will refer to the following FIGS. 1/3 to 3/3 in which it is shown an absolutely not limiting preferred embodiment of the invention. In particular:

FIG. 1 shows schematically the cargo supporting structure applied to the rear open side of a generic container;

FIG. 2 is a front view of the open side of the container with the scheme of the cargo supporting structure made up of the belts coupled to a deformable and not extensible central element;

FIG. 3 shows a particular of the deformable and not extensible element in its preferred embodiment shaped as a ring,

FIG. 4 shows a side view of the liner arranged inside the container for the transport of the bulk material to be supported by means of the structure object of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring to said appended figures, it will be described now in detail a preferred embodiment of the present invention in a not limiting way, with reference to the example of a cargo to be transported in a container of standard dimensions made up of a liner containing bulk material.

In FIG. 1 it is described schematically the open side of a container 5 of standard dimensions ISO 20 ft or ISO 40 ft (i.e. units equal to twenty or forty feet) with the cargo supporting structure object of the present invention; in particular the cargo to be supported is made up of a liner 4 for the transport of bulk material. Said supporting structure for the liner is made up of a plurality of pre-tensioned belts 1, a deformable and not extensible element 2 in composite material arranged in the centre and at least a tensioning means 3 for adjusting the tension of the belts 1. The liner 4 in the container is provided with at least an opening 6 through which the bulk material can be introduced or extracted from the same liner. In the preferred embodiment of the cargo supporting structure represented in FIG. 1, the deformable element 2 is shaped as a circular ring 2 around which the belts 1 pass, and is able to be slightly deformed when subdued to the belt tension. However, at the same time, the ring 2 cannot be elastically extended since it is provided inside with a stiffening in steel wires with which the element 2 is given more stiffness.

The liner 4 to be supported usually has more o lees standardized dimensions as well since it has to be arranged in the container 5 and has to full almost entirely its inner volume.

As it is shown in the front view of FIG. 2, the pre-tensioned belts 1 are anchored on both ends to different connection points (preferably opposed with respect to each other) arranged on the inner wall of the container 5, making attention that each belt 1 abuts in its way the central ring 2 thus acting as support for the same ring. In such a way, as it is clear from FIG. 2, the ring 2 maintains itself in an almost central position thanks to the combined action of the belts 1 after being tensioned. Always referring to the preferred embodiment shown in FIG. 2, it is clear that a first belt la starts from the end in the top right-hand of the container, crosses the ring 2 in its upper portion and goes through it going out from the other side to be coupled to the upper end opposed to the starting one, i.e. in the top left-hand. A similar procedure can be adopted to position a second belt lb in a specular way to the belt la in the lower portion of the liner 4. A third belt lc can be positioned horizontally almost at half height of the container and can be coupled to the opposed end making attention that it goes first through the inside and then to the outside of the ring 2 arranged in the centre, as it was a tab. It is also possible that the single belts 1 can go around the ring 2 many times to be anchored optimally. According to an alternative embodiment of the scheme of the cargo supporting structure, said third belt lc can be substituted by a couple of belts (not represented for convenience) to be arranged always horizontally, each one with an end coupled to the inner wall of the container (right side and left side) and the other end to the central ring 2. The cargo supporting structure thus obtained by the coupling of the belts and the central ring is tensioned by acting on only one tensioning means 3 arranged on any of the structure arms, i.e. on one of the belts 1. Said tensioning means 3 can be advantageously arranged on any belt 1, but it is preferable to be positioned at a relatively low height with respect to the floor of the container 5, hence at one of the belts positioned in the lower portion of the liner 4. Said tensioning means 3 can consist of ratchet levers.

Unlike the systems known at the state of the art, the properties of the material with which it is made up of the deformable and not extensible element realized as a central ring 2 in the preferred embodiment, allow to adjust the tension from only one point of the cargo supporting structure by means of a tensioning means 3 and to balance the whole structure transferring uniformly the tension state to the other belts.

In fact the central ring 2, as schematized in FIG. 3, is made up of a composite material made up of a matrix in reinforced elastomer with a material which gives it more stiffness. The elastomer can be usually cured rubber while the stiffening can be a steel ring arranged along the inner circumference 21 of the ring 2 or alternatively a plurality of steel wires arranged inside the rubber matrix. It is clear that also other materials can be used provided that the elasticity and at the same time a sufficient stiffness are maintained to avoid the extension as a purely elastic of the deformable element 2.

Finally, FIG. 4 shows schematically the liner 4 to be arranged inside the container 5, which is realized in low density polyethylene and has an average thickness of about 0.14 mm. As it is shown in the side view, the liner 4 can be provided with one or more openings 6 for the introduction and the extraction of the bulk material to be transported.

In addition to the cargo supporting structure of a container as described so far it can be further provided a raffia cloth (not represented for convenience and drawing simplicity) to be interposed between the structure made up of the belts 1 coupled to the central ring 2 and the liner 4 to be supported. The aim of the use of said cloth is to provide a clear separation between the bulk material contained in the liner 4 and the cargo supporting structure. 

1. A cargo supporting structure (4) inside a container (5) from its open side comprising a plurality of pre-tensioned belts (1), at least a deformable and not extensible element (2), at least a tensioning means (3) wherein said cargo supporting structure is a reciprocal coupling between said belts (1) and said deformable and not extensible element (2) to which there are connected all said belts (1).
 2. The cargo supporting structure (4) inside a container (5) according to claim 1, wherein said tensioning means (3) is configured to tension all the plurality of pre-tensioned belts (1) of said supporting structure (4) and is arranged on any pre-tensioned belt (1) the supporting structure is provided with.
 3. The cargo supporting structure (4) inside a container (5) according to claim 1, wherein said deformable and not extensible element (2) is shaped as a circular ring (2).
 4. The cargo supporting structure (4) inside a container (5) according to claim 3, wherein said circular ring (2) is made up of a matrix of elastomer means with steel stiffening elements therein.
 5. The cargo supporting structure (4) inside a container (5) according to claim 4, wherein said steel stiffening elements can be arranged along an inner circumference (21) of the circular ring (2).
 6. The cargo supporting structure (4) inside a container (5) according to claim 1, wherein said tensioning means (3) can be made of ratchet levers.
 7. The cargo supporting structure (4) inside a container (5) according to claim 1, wherein said cargo (4) is made of a liner for the transport of bulk material inside the container (5). 